The present invention relates to a switch apparatus for use in a starter system of a vehicle, and more particularly, to a safety switch apparatus for use in a remote starter system of a vehicle having a transmission and a user actuating means for shifting said transmission.
In the last century, and since the dawn of the modern automobile age, cars have become an essential part of the daily routine of people around the world. Perhaps, in part, because of their still growing importance and their increasing integration into the lives of ordinary people, improvements have continually been made in automobile design in an effort to better adapt them to the particular needs of individual drivers and passengers In recent years, a common modification to the modern automobile has been to install a remote starter system, typically having an electronic component, as means by which a person might start their vehicle from a removed location.
In recognition of the fact that a vehicle having a manual transmission may sometimes be left in an in-gear configuration when shut off, and insofar as remote starter systems are not generally provided with a mechanism to prevent a remote starting of the vehicle while it is in the in-gear configuration, most remote starter systems to date have not been suitable, nor safe, for use in association with vehicles having manual transmissions.
One attempt to overcome this shortcoming in the design of remote starter systems can be seen in U.S. Pat. No. 5,646,457 (Vakavtchiev) for a Neutral Safety Switch Control Device using a Rotatable Magnet for Controlling Remote Vehicle Starting of a Vehicle Equipped with a Manual Transmission. The Vakavtchiev patent discloses a device mounted in an interior seating compartment of a vehicle as a means for preventing a remote starting of the vehicle while its transmission is in gear. The Vakavtchiev device is connected to a remote starter system on a twelve volt positive battery powered circuit. The Vakavtchiev device is provided with a rotational component having a line or string coiled thereabout, with one end of the string being attached to a shifter handle portion of a user actuating means for shifting the transmission. One of the problems with the device disclosed in the Vakavtchiev patent is that it is clearly visible and accessible to drivers and passengers of the vehicle, such that the appearance of the device typically interferes with the natural aesthetics of the interior seating compartment of the vehicle, and further, such that the device may be subject to tampering and may be easily broken.
Accordingly, a primary object of the present invention is to provide a safety switch apparatus, for use in a remote starter system of a vehicle, that reduces the risk of the vehicle being started from a remote location while its transmission is in an in-gear configuration.
Another object of one aspect of the invention is to provide a safety switch apparatus, for use in a remote starter system of a vehicle, that reduces the risk of tampering therewith.
A further object of one aspect of the invention is to provide a safety switch apparatus, for use in a remote starter system of a vehicle, that may be safely used in a vehicle having a manual transmission.
An additional object of one aspect of the invention is to provide a safety switch apparatus, for use in a remote starter system of a vehicle, that is easily adjustable and is mountable on a user actuating means for shifting the transmission, whether or not said user actuating means has a shifter linkage rod.
A still further object of one aspect of the invention is to provide a safety switch apparatus, for use in a remote starter system of a vehicle, that is capable of detecting an intermediate configuration of the user actuating means of the vehicle.
A yet still further object of one aspect of the invention is to provide a safety switch apparatus, for use in a remote starter system of a vehicle, that is simple and easy to use.
Another object of one aspect of the invention is to provide a safety switch apparatus, for use in a remote starter system of a vehicle, that may be electrically connected to one or more operative wiring connections of the remote starter system.
Yet another object of one aspect of the invention is to provide a safety switch apparatus, for use in a remote starter system of a vehicle, that is substantially concealed and substantially exterior relative to the interior seating compartment of the vehicle.
Still yet another object of one aspect of the invention is to provide a safety switch apparatus, for use in a remote starter system of a vehicle, that is substantially weather resistant.
Another object of one aspect of the invention is to provide a safety switch apparatus, for use in a remote starter system of a vehicle, that is easy to install.
Yet another object of one aspect of the invention is to provide a safety switch apparatus, for use in a remote starter system of a vehicle, that is inexpensive and easy to manufacture.
In accordance with the present invention, there is disclosed a safety switch apparatus for use in a remote starter system of a vehicle having a transmission and a user actuating means for shifting the transmission. The user actuating means has a translatable portion that is moveable between a forward configuration, an intermediate configuration, and a rearward configuration. The forward and rearward configurations correspond to in-gear configurations of the transmission, and the intermediate configuration corresponds to a neutral configuration of the transmission. The starter system has a disabled starter configuration, and a default enabled starter configuration in which the vehicle is remotely startable.
According to the present invention, the safety switch apparatus has a magnetically actuated electrical switch means for switching the starter system from the default enabled starter configuration to the disabled starter configuration. The electrical switch means has an open switch configuration, and a closed switch configuration that is coincident with the disabled starter configuration of the starter system. A first configuration of the open and closed switch configurations is a default switch configuration. A respective other configuration of the open and closed switch configurations is a magnetically switched configuration. The safety switch apparatus also has a magnetic means for urging the electrical switch means from the default switch configuration into the magnetically switched configuration, when the magnetic means is in a substantially adjacent relation with the electrical switch means. A first one of the electrical switch means and the magnetic means is securely mountable at a fixed mounting position on the vehicle. A respective other one of the electrical switch means and the magnetic means is directly and securely mountable on the translatable portion of the user actuating means. As such, the respective other one is moveable relative to the first one. When the closed switch configuration is the default switch configuration, the magnetic means is in substantially adjacent relation with the electrical switch means when the translatable portion of the user actuating means is in the intermediate configuration. When the open switch configuration is the default switch configuration, the magnetic means comprises a forward magnetic means and a rearward magnetic means, and the forward magnetic means is in substantially adjacent relation with the electrical switch means when the translatable portion of the user actuating means is in the rearward configuration. By contrast, when the open switch configuration is the default switch configuration, the rearward magnetic means is in substantially adjacent relation with the electrical switch means when the translatable portion is in the forward configuration. The translatable portion of the user actuating means is operatively interposed between the transmission and a shifter handle portion of the user actuating means. Both the fixed mounting position and the translatable portion are substantially concealed and located substantially exterior relative to an interior seating compartment of the vehicle.
According to a further aspect of the invention, the closed switch configuration is the default switch configuration.
According to another aspect of the invention, the magnetic means includes a natural magnet.
According to a still further aspect of the invention, the first one is provided with a mounting plate, and the respective other one is provided with a mounting clamp.
According to an additional aspect of the invention, the electrical switch means is securely mountable at the fixed mounting position, and the magnetic means is directly and securely mountable on the translatable portion of the user actuating means.
According to a still yet further aspect of the invention, the mounting clamp has an adjustable magnet mounting portion.
According to a yet still further aspect of the invention, the electrical switch means further comprises an electrical circuit having a default closed circuit configuration and an open circuit configuration. When the electrical switch means is in the open switch configuration, the electrical circuit is in the open circuit configuration.
According to yet another aspect of the invention, the fixed mounting position is located on a frame of the vehicle. The translatable portion is located on a shifter linkage rod of the user actuating means.